topic Re: Canon Speedlites.... in Speedlite Flashes

Canon Speedlites....

TheRogue — Wed, 28 Dec 2016 20:24:48 GMT

I've just bought a 5D3 and included a 600 RTII EX flashgun in the purchase. However, I have also a a 270ex II which I purchased for use with my G3X. Just for the hell of it, I tried this smaller flash on the 5D3. I tried in Manual setting the shutter to 1/250, and F to 4.5 and varous other settings. I noticed that the shutter reverts to 1/200 sec when shutter button is pressed halfway. is this normal? I thought that the flash would sync at 250? I have to add that I am away from base so have been unable to try the 600RT II to assume that the smaller flash will not sync in the same way. Or do I have it wrong somehow?

Re: Canon Speedlites....

RobertTheFat — Wed, 28 Dec 2016 21:48:56 GMT

@TheRogue wrote:
I've just bought a 5D3 and included a 600 RTII EX flashgun in the purchase. However, I have also a a 270ex II which I purchased for use with my G3X. Just for the hell of it, I tried this smaller flash on the 5D3. I tried in Manual setting the shutter to 1/250, and F to 4.5 and varous other settings. I noticed that the shutter reverts to 1/200 sec when shutter button is pressed halfway. is this normal? I thought that the flash would sync at 250? I have to add that I am away from base so have been unable to try the 600RT II to assume that the smaller flash will not sync in the same way. Or do I have it wrong somehow?

Check your manual; the sync speed on a 5D3 is indeed 1/200 sec. I'm pretty sure some Canon APS-C cameras (the 7D, for instance) do sync at 1/250. But remember that the shutter curtains have farther to travel on a full-frame camera.

Re: Canon Speedlites....

TheRogue — Wed, 28 Dec 2016 21:55:22 GMT

Yeah Bob, cheers for that. I would certainly have checked the manual had it not been 40 miles away. But you have rested my fears that I was doing something wrong.

Re: Canon Speedlites....

Waddizzle — Wed, 28 Dec 2016 23:32:18 GMT

@TheRogue wrote:
Yeah Bob, cheers for that. I would certainly have checked the manual had it not been 40 miles away. But you have rested my fears that I was doing something wrong.

The manual is only a short download away.

https://www.usa.canon.com/internet/portal/us/home/support

Go to that link, and navigate your way to the 5D3 support page.

Re: Canon Speedlites....

TheRogue — Thu, 29 Dec 2016 12:17:25 GMT

Erm, yep! But being on Xmas leave, and not wanting to appear rude with family and friends etc, by surfing the net, downloading manuals and solving what turned out to be a minor issue the long way round, I thought, "I know, I'll post a quick question on the Canon forum and no-one will even notice." And hey ho, there it was - an almost instant answer! Job done!

Re: Canon Speedlites....

RobertTheFat — Thu, 29 Dec 2016 15:51:35 GMT

@TheRogue wrote:
Erm, yep! But being on Xmas leave, and not wanting to appear rude with family and friends etc, by surfing the net, downloading manuals and solving what turned out to be a minor issue the long way round, I thought, "I know, I'll post a quick question on the Canon forum and no-one will even notice." And hey ho, there it was - an almost instant answer! Job done!

Well, I can't quarrel with your result. You were lucky enough to encounter someone who owns a 5D3 and had already downloaded the manual. But I'd be at a loss to try to explain why logging into the forum should offend your family and friends less than going to the regular Canon site. Mine must be more clueless than yours, as I doubt they'd be likely to even notice the difference.

Re: Canon Speedlites....

diverhank — Thu, 29 Dec 2016 16:11:08 GMT

Just in case you don't know, you can switch to high speed sync (on the flash) to overcome the 1/200 limitation. It comes at a cost (less light output) but works rather well for most cases.

Re: Canon Speedlites....

TheRogue — Thu, 29 Dec 2016 16:18:11 GMT

I think its more the time spent downloading, tracking the problem, working it out and finding the solution, being rude, Vs asking the question here and getting the answer. If no answer had been forthcoming then I would have waited until a less 'social' time of the year and done it the hard way.

Re: Canon Speedlites....

kvbarkley — Fri, 30 Dec 2016 01:05:21 GMT

No High Speed Sync on on the 270EX!

Re: Canon Speedlites....

TheRogue — Fri, 30 Dec 2016 07:19:11 GMT

That doesn't surprise me! I don't really need high speed sync with the 270ex II - I wouldn't even normally use it at all on the 5D3. I was just having a play round. 1/200 is fine, IF I ever needed to use it!

Re: Canon Speedlites....

diverhank — Fri, 30 Dec 2016 08:33:26 GMT

@TheRogue wrote:
That doesn't surprise me! I don't really need high speed sync with the 270ex II - I wouldn't even normally use it at all on the 5D3. I was just having a play round. 1/200 is fine, IF I ever needed to use it!

If you use the flash outdoors as a fill, you will need hss. It's essential for portraits with low Av values... Your shutter speeds will need to be much faster than 1/200. I will not get any thing that can't do High speed sync

Re: Canon Speedlites....

TheRogue — Fri, 30 Dec 2016 08:38:02 GMT

Yeah sure man I hear that. But like I said at the top of this thread, I didn't get the 270ex for use with the 5D3, I got it to use with my G3X in the dim and distant past. I've got the 600rt II ex for times when I need that level of flash control. I have to say though, the 270ex does 'look good' on the 5D3. Pity it so underpowered and under featured. You get what you pay for I guess.

Re: Canon Speedlites....

TCampbell — Fri, 06 Jan 2017 17:56:41 GMT

@diverhank wrote:
@TheRogue wrote:
That doesn't surprise me! I don't really need high speed sync with the 270ex II - I wouldn't even normally use it at all on the 5D3. I was just having a play round. 1/200 is fine, IF I ever needed to use it!
If you use the flash outdoors as a fill, you will need hss. It's essential for portraits with low Av values... Your shutter speeds will need to be much faster than 1/200. I will not get any thing that can't do High speed sync

I have, upon occasion, used a 3 stop ND filter to get around this.

In bright sun, any camera can use ISO 100, 1/100th sec, and f/16. If you take that to 1/200th then the f-stop drops to f/11. With a 3 stop filter it takes it down to f/4. This is a work-around if you need to use a flash that doesn't support HSS as a "fill" flash.

Of course, now you're pulling filters out of your bag ... so it's nice to just have a flash that supports HSS.